Released in 1939, ‘Gone with the Wind’ remains one of the most ambitious productions in Hollywood history. Based on Margaret Mitchell’s 1936 bestselling novel, the Civil War epic required massive sets, thousands of extras, a nationwide search for its lead actress, and multiple directors before it reached the screen. The photos below offer a rare look at the people and processes behind the making of this landmark film.
Clark Gable and Vivien Leigh playing a board game between filming scenes.
According to Frank Buckingham, one of the film’s technicians, Clark Gable would sometimes eat garlic before his kissing scenes with Vivien Leigh as a joke.
Filming the burning of Atlanta.
For the epic scene that depicts an inferno ripping through the Georgia city, new false facades were built in front of producer David O. Selznick’s old abandoned sets, and Selznick himself operated the controls for the explosives that burned them down.
Extras on set lining up to receive lunch during the shooting of one of the film’s scenes.
In one scene, producer Selznick insisted on no fewer than 2,500 extras to lie in the dirt portraying the dead and wounded Confederate soldiers near the end of the war. At the time, the Screen Actors Guild only had 1,500 to offer, so Selznick used 1,000 dummies instead.
Director Victor Fleming holding the novel ‘Gone With The Wind’ while in discussion with Leslie Howard and Vivien Leigh.
The film took several years to make, as producer David O. Selznick was determined to secure Gable for the role of Rhett Butler, while 1,400 women were interviewed for the part of Scarlett before Leigh was chosen.
An editing department employee with rolls of film on the set of Gone With the Wind.A technician on the set points to a board showing the different locations of the scenes in chronological order.
Most of the filming was done on ‘the back forty’ of Selznick International Studios, with all the location scenes photographed in California, mostly in Los Angeles County or neighboring Ventura County.
Clark Gable and director Victor Fleming share a joke on set.A behind the scenes shot of a location being discussed. On the centre of the table sits a diorama of a town with a railway depot.The auction house is expecting ‘huge interest’ in the photos in light of it being a landmark anniversary for the film.Victor Jory, Barbara O’Neil and Oscar Polk on set. Throughout his career Jory was mostly cast in villainous or sinister roles, like Jonas Wilkerson in Gone with the WindHattie McDaniel, right, as Mammy, on the set of Gone with the Wind in 1939.Vivien Leigh and Thomas Mitchell, as Gerald O’Hara, on the set of Gone with the Wind in 1939Clark Gable and Vivien Leigh on the set of Gone with the Wind in 1939.Leslie Howard, as Ashley Wilkes, on the set of Gone with the Wind in 1939.Victor Fleming directs a scene on the set of Gone with the Wind in 1939.Olivia de Havilland as Melanie Hamilton on the set of Gone with the Wind in 1939.The set of Gone with the Wind in 1939.Production Designer William Cameron Menzies in 1939.Technical Advisor Susan Myrick and Evelyn Keyes, Suellen O’Hara, on the set of Gone with the Wind in 1939.Film Editor Hal C. Kern, third from left, and others, edit Gone with the Wind in 1939.The set of Gone with the Wind in 1939.Vivien Leigh on the set of Gone with the Wind in 1939.Victor Fleming, second from right, and Olivia de Havilland, right, on the set of Gone with the Wind in 1939.From left: Susan Myrick, Clark Gable, and Victor Fleming on the set of Gone with the Wind in 1939.Behind the Scenes: Gone With the Wind (1939)
Sarah Johnson is a freelance writer and photographer with a passion for exploring the world. Her writing is both informative and engaging, offering unique perspectives on travel, food, and lifestyle.
There are some here I’ve not seen before. I think #32 were extras. Great pictures!